The Hands Of Uncertainty
by Taayluur
Summary: The Death of Luke Castellan through the eyes of Luke Castellan.


**The Hands of Uncertainty: Luke Castellan POV**

Everything around me seemed to slow down as I tried to execute a kill-move on Percy. Grover tried to throw himself in the way- brave Grover, always brave. In a simple flash, he was limply thrown aside. Percy sidestepped my attack, and jabbed under my guard- Strong Percy. Unfortunately, I knew better. I countered this with one of the first moves I ever taught him, but that was a long time ago. After every breath was sucked from Percy's lungs, the only sound heard was the clatter of Riptide skimming across Olympus's marble floor. It was over. This was truly- "STOP!" a familiar voice came from nowhere. Without thinking I turned around, and slashed with back-biter. Then, a rush of adrenaline came over the girl, and she quickly countered the slash with her dagger- Chivalrous Annabeth.

Annabeth pushed forward, compelling all her weight into a single step. Our blades where crossed, as we pushed together will all our might. They didn't budge. We were at a standstill, and I was face to face with my baby Annabeth. "Luke," she said through clenched teeth. Though inside I could tell her voice was breaking, only because I knew her so. "You have to trust me. I understand now."

I wanted to reach out. I wanted to cry out to her, but I could not. The overwhelming rage of the Titan lord, Kronos, came over my will of speech, and roared. "Luke Castellan is dead! His body will burn away, and I shall assume my true form!" That was a lie, and Kronos knew it. I was still in there, stirring, still with coherent thoughts, yet everything was hopeless. I couldn't move my own body. I gave up that right to Kronos. At what age are you allowed to look back on your life with nothing, but regret? Is nineteen too young?

Annabeth was strong, always headstrong. She practically was half dead, but she still found the strength to fight me. Of course, that's the way I raise her to never back down. I forced all of my weight forward, pushing its momentum into another step, yet Annabeth held their ground. As Kronos fought back against her all I could find myself to do was watch those eyes, her silvery-grey eyes.

"Your mother," Annabeth grunted. "She saw your fate."  
>Annabeth, my Annabeth, she was trying to get through to me. She was trying to reach out to me in the way I couldn't to her. "Service to Kronos! This is my fate!" The titan roared referring to myself in the first person.<br>"No!" Annabeth instisted. Tears were forming in Annabeth's eyes. It killed what was left of me to see her cry. Strong Annabeth almost never cried. It took a lot. Oh, Annabeth. "This is not the end, Luke," She said to me. I heard her out, if I could smile right now. I most definitely would me. "The prophecy: she saw what you would do! It applies to you!"  
>I was touched my heart began to melt, and my will to fight back grew stronger, and stronger. And as I grew stronger, Kronos grew weaker. Of course, Kronos knew this for himself. "I will crush you child!" He bellowed, unsuccessfully dismissing the topic.<br>"You won't," Annabeth cried out against him. Words were her only weapon. "You promised. You're holding Kronos back even now." The truth is this statement was overwhelming, and true in every way. I didn't want to fiGht for Kronos anymore. I didn't want to be Kronos. I wanted to be Luke.  
>As my will to fight back grew, Kronos's rage grew with it, rage pinpointed to a certain blonde. With the immense of force Kronos blew at her, Annabeth stumbled back, losing her balance. And with a newly free hand, Kronos struck her face. I peered out of the corner of my eye, Percy had meekly risen, but he looked like he had a million weights on his shoulders. Kronos stood over Annabeth, and raised his sword. I stared at her helplessness, and the strange combination of both innocence, sympathy, and rage in her eyes. The blood trickled from the side of her mouth, and she was batter and bruised. "Family, Luke. you promised." I couldn't take it. He was going to kill her, but he wasn't not on my watch. I summoned all my willpower, and immediately fought back with all my might. This couldn't be the end, not yet. No one else is going to die, because of me. Then, my fighting did something, trigged something. Kronos lost his center of balance, and staggered. My very own eyes widened at the site of Annabeth's knife. <em>"Promise." <em>She managed to say…

I gasped like a dying tuna fish like a was struggling for a mere breath of air. "Annabeth…" I managed, but my voice was not deep, and echoey. It was adolescent. It was my voice. I stumbled forward like I was tripping on my own feet. My mind was whirling at the moment, like how a baby can't produce coherent thoughts, and can't come to control its own body.  
>"My knife…" Annabeth muttered. Her knife slipped from her hands. She was so battered she lost use of her hands. The clattering sound of the knife falling against the floor seemed to have a dramatic affect to it as the sound bounced of the ornate walls of Olympus. "Percy, please…"<br>I made a single step towards Annabeth, but as soon as I raised my very foot, every synapse in Percy's brain of seaweed seemed to snap in order. "Don't touch her." he said. Oh, how Percy loved her. Percy loved her. I could see it in his eyes. Annabeth would be in good hands.  
>And as I decided this, everything began to change. My body was turning gold, and beams of light were bursting from me. "Jackson…" Kronos managed to pull over me to growl, his tone was that of satisfaction like when the Stoll brother pulled off a newly successful prank. I knew what was happening either way this would end out.<br>It was the end for me. I let out another dying-tuna like gasp. "He's changing," I said with every ounce of might I could possibly pull off. "Help… He's almost ready. He won't need my body anymore. Please-"  
>"NO!" Kronos bellowed over me. Little did he know these would be his very last words. Through his eye view, I could obviously tell her was looking for his sword, Back Biter, but it was in the hearth. Kronos hoplessly stumbled toward, sending Percy backwards.<br>Then, I heard Annabeth mutter something. "The knife, Percy…" Her voice was hallow as she said it, but she figured it out. She put two and two together. That was my Annabeth. "Hero… cursed blade…"  
>Kronos was never one for compliance. Out of his own stubbornness, he reached into the fire to grab Backbiter, but the fire raged. The scythe wasn't compatible. I swear I got a glimpse of Hestia giving Kronos a stern look. My mind was reeling so fast, the pain seemed unreal. Off guard, I collapsed.<br>"Percy, Please…" I gasped. Percy struggled to gain steadiness upon his feet as I tried to contain the fire of Kronos fighting back inside me. I read Percy's expression. He was going to kill me. I had no time to register my complete thought before I just said, "You can't… can't do it yourself… He'll break my control. He'll defend himself. Only my hand. I know where. I can… I can keep him controlled." I was glowing so bright, I could see a rim light forming around my own vision. The time was at hand. There was no time to spare. I recited this thought to him. "Please. No time."  
>And it was at this very moment that the prophecy was fulfilled. It all lead down to Percy. Of course it lead down to Percy. Now, at this very moment, he would make the decision for Olympus to rise or fall, whether he knew that or know was oblivious to me. All I could do was hope he could put the kelp in his brain to good use.<br>He gave me the knife.  
>I stabbed myself at my left side, the weakness. The place where I would die if I hit it, and as these thoughts whirled through my mind, thoughts of a world without me. I was dying. Before I fell peacefully into the arms of death, I managed my final goodbyes. Everyone was leaning over me, knelt at my side. "Good… blade…" I croaked weakly. Tears were in Annabeth, and Grover's eyes, not Percy's though which was good. He needed to be strong. He needed to be able to pull Annabeth through the tragedy that was my life. Despite all these whirling thoughts, I cracked a smile like any son of Hermes would. "You knew… I almost kill you, but… you knew."<br>"Sssh," hushed her broken voice. "You were a hero at the end, Luke. You'll go to the Elysium." Honestly, through the past life-changing five minutes that was the last thing on my mind. "Think… rebirth. Try for three times. Isles of the Blest."  
>Annabeth sniffled, and wiped a tear from her eye. "You've always been too hard on yourself." And at this comment I remembered a certain snarky smirk. The snarky, high-handed smirk of a girl with short, black hair, and electric blue eyes, <em>Thalia. <em>I wish she were here. Here with us. So I could tell her one last time that I love her. That I always have loved her, and maybe if I were lucky –when Artemis wasn't looking- she'd say it back. On that topic, it lead me to a very, very important question.  
>"Did you…" I cough, gushing blood from my mouth. "Did you love me?" I said in the most cliché way possible. It wasn't the way I'd like to sign off, but I was curious to this.<br>She started to stutter some incoherent non-sense, but then she seemed to acknowledge Percy's presence. Percy was still trying to register everything, but the way he looked at her. She meant the world to him. "You were a brother to me," Annabeth explained. "But I didn't love you." I'd be at peace knowing just that.  
>"We need ambrosia. We can-" Grover said in the most character way possible. I tilted my head softly to meet eyes with Grover.<br>"Grover," I said, as he braced himself for the sappiness. "You are truly the bravest satyr I ever knew. But no. There's no healing."  
>Grover brought up his composure, and nodded strong. I grabbed Percy's sleeve, and a undesirable expression rose on his face. "Ethan. Me… All the unclaimed… Don't let it happen again."<br>"I won't," He said. "I promise."  
>And with that I was at peace.<p> 


End file.
